Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1887-10-20

DeWolf Eight immense hospitals with
the most skilled specialists on every
staff care for the unfortunate and sick.
The medical fraternity are Justly proud
of the celebrated medical men of
Chicago. They are possessed of no mean
skill. Their renown has spread over
the country and their deeds are written
in history. Ten cities possess brighter
names than the illustrious galaxy of
Chicago physicians. Men point with
pride to Allen, Gum, Lyman, Byford,
Jewel, Andrews, Isham, Dudley and
others.
Churches of monstrous size, fine
architecture and costly finish bedeck the
city in various places. Many of the
pulpits are filled by the most celebrated
divines. The notable names of divinity
include, Swing, Thomas, Patten, Kilt
ridge, Noble and the president of the
Chicago University.
The bar of Chicago is an honor to any
country tits filed with men of large
brain and keen acumen. No enconiums
need be pronounced on such men as
Sweat, Stile, GrinneU and Mills, with
the large number of judges who sit on
the benches to decide the rights of men.
Though Chicago is a business city in the
main yet it abounds inslavish luxury,
palatial residences and retired men of
power and wealth. Christmas holidays
is time to be remembered in Chicago
The God of gifts seems to have moved
in town and to stir all the hearts to the
bottom with generosity People move
along the sidewalks 7 to 10 deep in
search of,fatterers Of the heart. Good
humor is bestir in all the great city
which too soon speeds on to revelry.
For a city of 100000 inhabitants
wretchedness and squalor is happily
scarce. Poverty it is true exists more
than the generous heart desires but that
is the common poverty of men over all
the world. An ordinary laborer can
earn a living and own little home with
good management. The plan of the
city is fair. Its streets are fairly wide,
long and straight, one is said to be nine
miles long without bend. The streets
are paved with stone and wood set on
end which has been condemned as
unhealthy because it holds too much
water.
A very interesting place to visit is
the stock yards and slaughter houses.
In going there various grades of the city
can be seen. The sign reading "Old
Kentucky" in big yellow colored letters
serves as one of the land marks, by the
way, considerable discussion arises as to
the most human method of killing
cattle. The two methods practiced are
shooting or stabbing them just behind
the horns with a sharp iron instrument
which when it enters the upper end of
the spinal cord called the MEDULLA kills
instantly. After watching the process
for some time it's our opinion that the
killing would be more humanely done
by the use of electricity. We have
never heard of it being employed but
hope some good man will follow out the
suggestion. The killing of hogs is the
most exciting. Each hog is caught by
the hind leg and by means of little
chain is raised and hooked into ring
which slides on aninclined, smooth pole
toward the ''sticker." The "sticker" is
a savage looking man with a great long
shining butcher knife in his hand. He
looks worse than any doctor we ever
saw, save one. He waits for each pig to
slip along the pole toward him when he
sticks that long knife with cool precision
into the very heart of the hog. A red
crimson stream of blood quickly follows
and the hog slides to the end of the
pole to die in few minutes when he is
scalded. It is common thing to see
those men cruelty scald a hog before he
is dead or done kicking. The "sticker''
can stick a hog in a minute He is
scarcely ever known to miss the heart
Parks are fine feature of the city
the poor mans resting place. Lincoln
park, of several hundred acres filled
with plants, animals and rustic walks
interest everybody.